How do you casually mention that you own an airplane without coming off like a ****?

Amusingly, in my collection of odd ID's and certifications (to include my radiotelegraph operators license in case I ever need to go work a radio on an ocean-going ship) is a TWIC card: Transportation Worker Identification Credential. Essentially, it's a SIDA badge for seaports and is issued by the TSA. Amusingly, a lot of times the TSA doc checker at the airport won't accept it. Oddly, the further away from the coast I get, the MORE likely they'll take it. One even told me that he doesn't see many of those. At CLT they didn't like it because they were testing this new driver's license scanning thing and they were trying to encourage that. At DCA the guy was a prick about not taking it so I filed a complaint with the TSA. I got a message from the national office saying that he should have taken it but they always have the right to demand a second ID. A few days later I actually got a phone call from the DCA TSA station chief saying that he was sorry, that shouldn't have happened, and the screener had been reeducated. Better response than I thought.

Of course the little piece of 3x5 card that has my FRZ pin that I got in 2002 is pretty worthless (don't even know where it is, I committed the PIN to memory).

I occasionally use my Passport Card. It’s almost totally illegible and the photo is so washed out it could be Osama Bin Lauden. Never been turned down.

Cheers
 
To the OP, I would say who cares what others think. It seems socially acceptable for people to talk about their children with out being prompted and kids cost way more time and money than getting a pilots license, so i've heard. I hear you, I don't normally bring it up.
 
To the OP, I would say who cares what others think. It seems socially acceptable for people to talk about their children with out being prompted and kids cost way more time and money than getting a pilots license, so i've heard. I hear you, I don't normally bring it up.

Genius. I need to roll out the "standard oh-you-are-a-pilot?" response when people mention their offspring. Backing away slowly, a fight or flight tension, looks of wonderment at what is certainly a daredevil crazy person with too much money to burn on frivolous acts.
 
Here's a way to let others know you're a pilot that will certainly not ruffle any feathers:

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and kids cost way more time and money than

In fairness, that's only true if you give a crap. Plenty of EZ-bake oven, if-it's-legal-it's-good-enough, absentee so-called parents. Easy as pie to handle kids like that, and we all get to eat the moral hazard in adulthood.
 
One guy who had been a former ATC put down that he had an FAA clearance? FAA clearance? What? Clearance to land? But they do run a background check on these guys apparently (probably the same one they did on me when I got my FRZ authorization).

Most government employees have a "Public Trust" background investigation and "clearance." Not really a true clearance.
 
In fairness, that's only true if you give a crap. Plenty of EZ-bake oven, if-it's-legal-it's-good-enough, absentee so-called parents. Easy as pie to handle kids like that, and we all get to eat the moral hazard in adulthood.

No different than certain aircraft owners, really. :D
 
FAA employees with need do have full secret or TS. There are some.

VERY few in the big FAA population. I've dealt with them once in 25+ years in the biz and it was a cyber exploit thingy.

My wife and I took another couple on an overnight trip in the 182 a few years ago that took us down the Chesapeake Bay on a summer Saturday. My wife commented "look at all those rich people in their boats" Had to chuckle.
 
Most government employees have a "Public Trust" background investigation and "clearance." Not really a true clearance.
Believe me, I know that. In addition to the "security" type clearances I had over the years, I was also the signer on some large ($25 million) contracts. They investigate your finances pretty carefully when you're in those situations.
 
…In addition to the "security" type clearances I had over the years, I was also the signer on some large ($25 million) contracts. They investigate your finances pretty carefully when you're in those situations.

My wife writes those contracts on her warrant. We go thru that exercise yearly. Yes, we.
 
You’re prolly right…. ;)
VERY few in the big FAA population. I've dealt with them once in 25+ years in the biz and it was a cyber exploit thingy.

My wife and I took another couple on an overnight trip in the 182 a few years ago that took us down the Chesapeake Bay on a summer Saturday. My wife commented "look at all those rich people in their boats" Had to chuckle.
 
Genius. I need to roll out the "standard oh-you-are-a-pilot?" response when people mention their offspring. Backing away slowly, a fight or flight tension, looks of wonderment at what is certainly a daredevil crazy person with too much money to burn on frivolous acts.

Or, I guess that not having kids is why I can own an airplane/sailboat/performance car/race car/any fun thing.......
 
Genius. I need to roll out the "standard oh-you-are-a-pilot?" response when people mention their offspring. Backing away slowly, a fight or flight tension, looks of wonderment at what is certainly a daredevil crazy person with too much money to burn on frivolous acts.

Genius! You built them in your house? What in the basement or something? How did you get them out?
 
Genius. I need to roll out the "standard oh-you-are-a-pilot?" response when people mention their offspring. Backing away slowly, a fight or flight tension, looks of wonderment at what is certainly a daredevil crazy person with too much money to burn on frivolous acts.
Sure, two kids in private school probably costs more than twin turboprop ownership, but at least the environmental impact is worse. :D
 
"Thank you for not breathing while I smoke."
 
I've had a few people come in for interviews with notations they were pilot on their resumes. It's been little more than an off-topic talking point.

One guy who had been a former ATC put down that he had an FAA clearance? FAA clearance? What? Clearance to land? But they do run a background check on these guys apparently (probably the same one they did on me when I got my FRZ authorization).
Why is. that? I would think it would provide insight into they're ability to follow through on a goal. I feel like I put more effort into my pilot cert than most of my college major classes in computer science.
 
Why is. that? I would think it would provide insight into they're ability to follow through on a goal. I feel like I put more effort into my pilot cert than most of my college major classes in computer science.
I guess because i know too many pilot counter examples. I'd rather see some signs of logical thinking and experience putting together some project rather than muddling through a set curriculum. Now if they had been a homebuilder and finished a plane, I might view that differently (but I still need to see something relevant to software).
 
I once mentioned in a management meeting that I wanted to see a graduation diploma on a resume rather than a G.E.D. certificate.

I understand that some people get into situations that may require them to go that route but quitting school after 10 or 11 years without a just cause seems like an early indicator that needs more clarification, but asking the applicant about that means that HR would have had a stroke ... :eek:
 
I once mentioned in a management meeting that I wanted to see a graduation diploma on a resume rather than a G.E.D. certificate.

I understand that some people get into situations that may require them to go that route but quitting school after 10 or 11 years without a just cause seems like an early indicator that needs more clarification, but asking the applicant about that means that HR would have had a stroke ... :eek:

My uncle ran into that for most of his career, he was accepted to college at 16, but had to get a GED to take the opportunity. Decades later, he had an MBA and management experience at multiple Fortune 500 companies and he had it come up in an interview.
 
I once mentioned in a management meeting that I wanted to see a graduation diploma on a resume rather than a G.E.D. certificate.

I understand that some people get into situations that may require them to go that route but quitting school after 10 or 11 years without a just cause seems like an early indicator that needs more clarification, but asking the applicant about that means that HR would have had a stroke ... :eek:

As an HR guy, I would ask you what business requirement is driving your question, not what your personal opinion on the matter is.

FrEx, if your hiring for an Medical Doctor and the role requires a board certified physician, I would laugh at you for demanding a high school diploma over a G.E.D. in the job requisition.

I would then have a conversation with your boss about your business acumen.

OTOH, if you’re hiring a lumberjack and worker’s comp premiums are lower for a lumberjack with a diploma over one with a GED, I’d accept that argument.
 
WTF is this "casually mention" nonsense. The real answer is that you enter rooms shouting "ok, who has flown the coolest plane!?!?" and let the games begin.
 
WTF is this "casually mention" nonsense. The real answer is that you enter rooms shouting "ok, who has flown the coolest plane!?!?" and let the games begin.

Yes, this exactly. While blinding your inferiors with a magnificently oversized chrome watch festooned with wings and dials and calculations and complications. :D
 
As an HR guy, I would ask you what business requirement is driving your question, not what your personal opinion on the matter is.

I grew from the experience but I knew a number of people that just quit school early because they were quitters. But I learned that sometimes life takes people down paths like that.
 
I grew from the experience but I knew a number of people that just quit school early because they were quitters. But I learned that sometimes life takes people down paths like that.
My dad left home as a teenager, moved across country and started a career, sending money back home to help support his mom and sisters. He eventually went back home. After graduating from college and being accepted into a graduate program at MIT, he was asked for a copy of his highschool diploma. It was only then that he had to go out and get a GED.
 
I grew from the experience but I knew a number of people that just quit school early because they were quitters. But I learned that sometimes life takes people down paths like that.

Personally, I think if someone has any education beyond a GED, then the GED is not something that should be judged on. Granted, I am on the younger side so if you have just a high school diploma or a GED at my age, you are going to have a very difficult time finding a job (after I dropped out of college, but before went back and finished my degree), was passed over for part time jobs paying less than 30K/year (in places where $30K/year would not be enough to afford a studio apartment) and was passed over because I had 102 credits but no degree.

The "you quit school because you are a quitter" is not an uncommon attitude, I faced it a lot after dropping out of college. Did I quit college because I am a quitter? Yes, being homeless sucks. After finishing out my semester, I decided that taking a job that allowed me to pay rent was a higher priority than continuing my degree and I thought I would be able to finish the degree with online classes in 2 semesters (reality it took me 8 years to finish). I had a job offer, it was the first "once in a lifetime economic event" of my career so I wasn't as experienced with economic challenges as I am now, so I took it even though it required that I leave the town my college was in. So I quit, I wish I hadn't, but I don't feel it was the wrong move. If I had stayed in school there was a much higher risk of me freezing to death in my minivan than existed if I dropped out an took a job.

Just remember, almost everyone who dropped out of high school did so before they were 18. Things happen to everyone that are out of their control, but before they are 18 (legally speaking) almost everything is out of their control. If an individual invests in themselves beyond the GED, I think the GED is irrelevant. But the flip side of that coin, is without some level of stability, an individual will have a difficult time investing in themselves.
 
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